LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has introduced a brand new nationwide lockdown for England till a minimum of mid-February to fight a fast-spreading new model of the coronavirus.
Johnson stated the nation is at “a vital second,” with circumstances rising quickly in each a part of the nation.
Underneath the brand new guidelines, that are set to return into impact as quickly as potential, main and secondary colleges and faculties will probably be closed for nose to nose studying aside from the kids of key staff. College college students is not going to be returning till a minimum of mid-February.
All nonessential retailers and private care companies like hairdressers will probably be closed, and eating places can solely function takeout companies.
As of Monday, there have been 26,626 COVID sufferers in hospitals in England, a rise of greater than 30% from every week in the past. That’s 40% above the best stage of the primary wave within the spring.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows beneath.
LONDON (AP) — Prime Minister Boris Johnson plans to stipulate harder restrictions to sluggish the unfold of COVID-19 on Monday, at the same time as Britain ramped up its vaccination program by turning into the primary nation to begin utilizing the shot developed by Oxford College and drugmaker AstraZeneca.
Johnson, who has stated harder measures are imminent, introduced that he would tackle the nation at 8 p.m. (3 p.m. EST). The U.Okay. Parliament will probably be recalled from its vacation recess to take a seat on Wednesday.
The U.Okay. has seen a surge in coronavirus circumstances in latest weeks as public well being officers wrestle to manage the unfold of a brand new variant of COVID-19 that’s extra contagious than earlier variants. Authorities have recorded greater than 50,000 new infections a day since passing that milestone for the primary time on Dec. 29. On Monday, they reported 407 virus-related deaths to push the confirmed loss of life toll complete to 75,431, one of many worst in Europe.
“In case you have a look at the numbers, there’s no query we must take harder measures and we will probably be saying these sooner or later,” Johnson stated whereas visiting among the individuals receiving the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine at Chase Farm Hospital in north London.
The U.Okay.’s chief medical officers warned that with out additional motion, “there’s a materials threat of the Nationwide Well being Service in a number of areas being overwhelmed over the following 21 days.”
Scottish chief Nicola Sturgeon additionally imposed a lockdown in her nation till the tip of January.
Starting Tuesday, individuals in Scotland will probably be required to remain at dwelling aside from important causes, to assist ease the stress on hospitals and intensive care items, Sturgeon stated. Underneath the brand new guidelines, individuals can exit for train however can solely meet one particular person from one other family. Colleges will stay closed till February, besides for youngsters of key staff and people in social care.
“I’m extra involved concerning the state of affairs we face now than I’ve been at any time since March final yr,” Sturgeon stated in Edinburgh.
Scotland, which controls its personal well being coverage underneath the U.Okay.’s system of devolved authorities, has typically imposed stricter coronavirus restrictions than these in England.
The bulletins come on the day U.Okay. well being authorities started placing the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine into arms across the nation, fueling hopes that life could start returning to regular by the spring.
Britain has secured the rights to 100 million doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, which is cheaper and simpler to make use of than a few of its rivals. Particularly, it doesn’t require the super-cold storage wanted for the Pfizer vaccine.
The brand new vaccine will probably be administered at a small variety of hospitals for the primary few days so authorities can be careful for any antagonistic reactions. However the NHS stated tons of of latest vaccination websites — together with native medical doctors’ places of work — will open later this week, becoming a member of the greater than 700 vaccination websites already in operation.
A “huge ramp-up operation” is now underway within the vaccination program, Johnson stated.
However facets of Britain’s vaccination plan have spurred controversy.
Each vaccines require two photographs, and Pfizer had advisable that the second dose be given inside 21 days of the primary. However the U.Okay.’s Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunization stated authorities ought to give the primary vaccine dose to as many individuals as potential, fairly than setting apart photographs to make sure others obtain two doses. It has stretched out the time between the doses from 21 days to inside 12 weeks.
Whereas two doses are required to totally shield in opposition to COVID-19, each vaccines present excessive ranges of safety after the primary dose, the committee stated. Making the primary dose the precedence will “maximize advantages from the vaccination program within the brief time period,” it stated.
Stephen Evans, a professor of pharmacoepidemiology on the London College of Hygiene & Tropical Drugs, stated policymakers are being compelled to steadiness the potential dangers of this alteration in opposition to the advantages in the midst of a lethal pandemic.
“Now we have a disaster state of affairs within the UK with a brand new variant spreading quickly, and as has turn out to be clear to everybody throughout 2020, delays value lives,” Evans stated. “When sources of doses and folks to vaccinate are restricted, then vaccinating extra individuals with probably much less efficacy is demonstrably higher than a fuller efficacy in solely half.”
In England alone, 24,957 individuals have been in hospitals with COVID-19 on Sunday. Whereas figures for Northern Eire, Scotland and Wales haven’t been up to date in latest days, that’s larger than the U.Okay.-wide peak throughout the first wave of the pandemic.
The federal government closed non-essential retailers throughout London and elements of southeast England earlier than Christmas to attempt to include the brand new variant, however well being officers say harder measures at the moment are wanted.
Johnson stated there have been “robust, robust” weeks to return within the battle in opposition to COVID-19. Extra college closures, curfews and the overall banning of family mixing might be on the agenda.
Whereas colleges in London are already closed as a consequence of excessive an infection charges within the capital, college students in lots of elements of the nation have been returning to in-person courses Monday after the Christmas holidays. Unions representing academics, nonetheless, have referred to as for colleges all through England to stay closed for a minimum of two weeks, with courses shifted to distant studying.
However with vaccination, there may be hope. Brian Pinker, an 82-year-old dialysis affected person, obtained the primary Oxford-AstraZeneca shot at 7:30 a.m. at Oxford College Hospital.
“The nurses, medical doctors and workers as we speak have all been sensible, and I can now actually stay up for celebrating my forty eighth wedding ceremony anniversary with my spouse, Shirley, later this yr,” Pinker stated in a press release launched by the Nationwide Well being Service.
___
Related Press Writers Jill Lawless and Sylvia Hui contributed to this report.
___
Comply with AP protection of the coronavirus pandemic at:
https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic
